Baltimore Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti has insisted that he and the organisation had no idea of the violence used in Ray Rice's assault on his wife in an Atlantic City hotel.

A report from ESPN last week insinuated that the Ravens had full facts of the incident that took place in February, which culminated in Rice's arrest at the time and placement in an intervention programme.

However, Bisciotti is adamant that the club believed that Rice had slapped his then-fiancee, and she was knocked out as a result of hitting her head off the wall of the lift the pair were in at the time.

He said in a statement: "We have stated what we knew and what we thought throughout – from the original report of the incident, to the release of the first videotape, to the release of the second videotape, which revealed a much harsher reality.

"As we said in our response to ESPN's questions on Friday, it was our understanding based on Ray's account that in the course of a physical altercation between the two of them he slapped Janay with an open hand, and that she hit her head against the elevator rail or wall as she fell to the ground."

The Ravens released Rice after footage emerged highlighting the violence of the attack.